by Johnny Zokovitch
For me, one of the truly transcendent and profound images from Scripture is the vision that we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses, as articulated in the Letter to the Hebrews, 12:1. It is especially at this time of year, on the cusp of celebrating All Saints and All Souls on November 1-2, that this reality seems especially close.
My church will remember in a litany all those within our families who have passed this year. Their names will be recited in Mass and written on a memorial wall in the vestibule. Photos of those who have died will be displayed on a table, some accompanied by mementos–lines from a letter they wrote or a snippet of poetry they cherished–all touchstones of people who, while gone are yet still here, still near, still somehow accompanying us. (You can add names from your cloud of witnesses here.)
In my home, my wife will find a special place to display pictures of family members or friends who have passed away, alongside prayer cards or images of people we never met in person but whose lives resonate with our own, like Dorothy Day or Oscar Romero. From now through the beginning of Advent, we’ll recall their stories, pausing to raise them in our minds and acknowledge how they influenced and shaped us.
I think that the enduring importance of the idea of a cloud of witnesses is because we have an innate need, especially in times of suffering and instability, to know that we are not alone. We rely on the promise that so many who have come before us carried the same fears and pain that we carry, and that they persevered, abiding in the hope they placed in Jesus’ proclamation of the reign of God. We hear that echo in the gospel for All Saints Day, the reading of the Beatitudes, and we endeavor to place ourselves among those who will be blessed, comforted, satisfied.
Last week I wrote that, in my puzzlement over the beatification of Fulton Sheen, I started my own list of US Catholics who led lives that profoundly and radically mirrored Jesus’ own and were at least as deserving of “sainthood” as he. One of those who immediately came to mind was Joe Nangle, ofm, my predecessor in writing this column. As a member of my own cloud of witnesses, I get to revisit Joe’s words every week when I write, looking for those places in his previous columns that might illuminate something in the one I am currently working on.
On All Saints Day in 2022, Joe wrote about “the faith-filled heroes and heroines who have shone in their lifetime and remain as beacons for us who come after them.” With gratitude for Joe and all those saints and souls which surround me and carry me, I’ll cede the rest of this space to his wisdom from that earlier column.
“The Catholic imagination celebrates thousands of unsung and often unknown saints. They come to mind when we say ‘ALL Saints,’ the ‘cloud of witnesses’ mentioned by St. Paul in his letter to the Hebrews. In a certain way they are closer to us precisely because they are anonymous. One such group is the women and men catechists in San Salvador who nurtured the faith of their people when it was considered a capital crime by powerful forces which put thousands of them to death.
“All Saints Day also calls us to consider our own vocation to holiness. As Pope Francis said, referring to this feast day: ‘It reminds us of the personal and universal vocation to holiness, and proposes sure models for this journey, that each person walks in a unique way, an unrepeatable way.’ …
“Then the pope offers some practical advice for those who believe that the notion of holiness is beyond us, relegated to ‘real saints.’ ‘Holiness does not come from following rigid rules that eliminates that freedom of the Spirit that Christ gives us; do not be afraid of holiness. It will take away none of your energy, vitality or joy; you will become what the Father had in mind when he created you and you will be faithful to your deepest self.’
“A final thought especially relevant for our times. We increasingly recognize that ‘a life well lived’ (holiness) must include ongoing awareness of the world of pain, violence and inhuman conditions that surround us. Our response comes through direct service and advocacy – charity and demanding justice. Saints today are considered as such not so much for their adherence to a particular faith tradition but for their dedication to work for God’s reign of justice, peace and care for creation…”
For Joe Nangle and all our sisters and brothers in that great cloud of witnesses – Presente!
Johnny Zokovitch is the former executive director of Pax Christi USA. He currently serves on the board of the Pax Christi International Fund for Peace and is in pastoral leadership at St. Cronan Catholic Church in St. Louis. Read more from Johnny at https://johnnyzokovitch.substack.com/ and sign up there to receive his articles directly to your email inbox.
Thanks for the reminder that saints walk among us all the time if we have eyes that see and ears that hear. As a wise person once said, if the Gospel teaches us anything, it is that the truth of things is better perceived at the margins of power and privilege, not at the center. If we want to encounter saints in our times, go to the margins.